Monday, April 12, 2010

Workout: supposed to be 6 miles, was actually 60:00 on the eliptical
Weight: 125.0

After the calf situation from last week, I've decided to take a little over a week off of running. I tried taping my calf up on Friday and running very, very slowly on the treadmill, but I could still feel some pain. I'm hoping that if I rest it sufficiently I'll still have a chance at running in the race. I'm going to take this week off and try again next Monday, if I haven't shot myself by then;)

One hour on the eliptical. I hate the eliptical. Hate it. I find it so intensely boring and I hate it. BUT. It is probably the best workout for me right now - I don't get my heart rate up high enough on the bike and I don't think I could do a whole hour on the stairmill without passing out. So eliptical it is - UGH.

Heart rate was up in the 140's - 150's for most of the workout. Last week I checked my resting heart rate one morning before I got out of bed and it was 63, so that makes me happy (I tried a morning before that and it was 77 - what?) I hope that I can keep my fitness level up so when I start running again its not like starting over - I mean I'm going to have to get out and do 6 miles on Monday - after essentially having taken a 3-4 week break.

Last week I sat down and made some decisions regarding my diet/health. I've been feeling a little out of control with my eating/weight/life lately. Nothing extreme, but not incredibly self-controlled. I needed to add some self-discipline back into my world... everywhere. So I'm trying to do the following:
* Plant First (have to get back to this)
* Veggies for snacks - not snacks for snacks
* Eat a real dinner, not hodge podge, scrounging after the girls go to bed
* Water or tea or wine after dinner - no snacking
* When I eat, just eat... don't multi-task & eat
* No eating standing up or driving in a car
* Chew each bite 20 times
* Plan meals thoughtfully, do not forage for food. Even for lunch - have the entire meal made and plated before eating: do not eat one thing, go back to the kitchen for the next thing, etc. etc.

I think I've successfully gained 3 pounds that have stuck:) I would still like to get below 120 by the summer regional in June. Its definitely doable, but is it important enough to me? 125 is easy and good - I just have to decide that I want 120 badly enough and I haven't come to any conclusions yet.

Monday March 1, 2010

Workout: 4 1/2 miles + 10:00 cross training
Weight: 123
Resting Heart Rate: Forgot

Great run this morning. I'm feeling so strong and confident while I'm running. Its incredibly enjoyable and I'm amazed at how quickly 4 1/2 miles became easy again. I'm really looking forward to running outside again - it will be hard, but I can't wait!

Ran at 6.0 until 4.25 miles (totally forgot to increase my pace until then). Ran the last 1/4 mile at 6.5. Feels good to open up like that - my stride is long, pace is steady.

Heart rate was 164/166 for entire run until I increased the pace.

Cross Training = 10 minutes of walking. I did a treadmill program that was designed around getting to and maintaining a certain heart rate. I was supposed to get up to 131 bpm. It took 7 minutes at a 13% incline and 3.8 mph to get back up to 131 and maintain it. I think I could have walked at 4.0 and should try that next time. Told Dave about this and he said he is also struggling to get his heart rate up while walking and doing the eliptical without making the incline or resistance ridiculous.

Today I'm getting back to a more controlled eating plan. I don't have everything planned out, but I'm going to cut out the snacky food - chex mix, target trail mixes, crackers, etc. Out. I need to go grocery shopping, but I'm going to focus back on Plant First. Last week was kind of rough in that regard.

I'm also going to begin painting throughout the house. Might not happen until after we get back from Steamboat because I need to pick out colors, but I'm going to do the entire house this year. Cornbread was offered an opportunity to transfer offices (to FL) and while we ultimately decided not to explore it, it did make us realize that 1) we are willing to move/transfer if the right office becomes available and 2) our house needs some serious work. I'm writing about this in this blog because when I paint I generally lose weight. Probably from the up and down the ladder, paint rolling etc. but also probably due to being too busy/occupied to eat. So, hopefully with a more controlled eating day and the addition of the painting activity I can reach my goal of 115 by race time. Once again, I'm not hung up on the number so much as I recognize that every pound I lose will help me run better/easier. I would like to fluctuate between 115 - 119 rather than 123 - 125.

Monday February 15, 2010

Weight: 126.4
Workout: 4 miles + 10 minutes cross training
Resting Heart Rate (rhr before getting out of bed): 65

This week we increase our M/W runs to 4 miles each. After running 5 1/2 last Saturday I wasn't hesitant about the 4 this morning at all. These are good workouts and exactly what I needed. I love it!

I ran the entire distance without a break. This is HUGE! My heart rate was up at 174bpm at the end, so its coming down bit by bit. I started running at 5.8, increased to 5.9 and finally to 6.0 for more than half of the distance. I ran the 4 miles in 41:06 which ends up being 10:17 miles. Good! I'm getting better. I feel really confident after this morning.

Afterward I did 10 minutes on the eliptical next to C. Those 10 minutes go so fast when you're chatting:) And I was pouring sweat... seems like noone else in the gym sweats and then I sweat enough for everyone else. Whatever.

I've never fluctuated this much with my weight before. I'm usually up on Mondays because of water retention. I had good intentions of counteracting this over the weekend, but ultimately I drank about 32 oz of water yesterday at 8pm and that was it. I had not had a drop of water all day and made myself drink that. Today I need to get going on the water. I've had 5-16oz glasses already, but I would like to have 12 of those by the end of the day. I would guess that my actual weight is around 124. I would still like to lose some more (maybe 5-10), but not badly enough to work too hard at it. I'm pretty comfortable here. I think as the mileage increases I will lose a little more. I'm not too concerned.

Last week was so crazy with the afternoon schedule, I need to get back into a good eating routine this week. I also sampled a few too many of my valentine's treats over the weekend while I was making them:) Today I will concentrate on vegetables first before anything else.

Monday, February 8, 2010

As a brief catch-up... Cornbread and I are signed on for a half-marathon in Indianapolis on May 8th. We are training. I made a training schedule that began on January 4th, so we're a little over a month into it. We run 3 days/week with a long run on Saturdays, circuit train on Thursdays (which totally sucks), cross train and weight train on T/F.

Weight: 126.0
Workout: 3.5 miles

Ran on the treadmill this morning. It wasn't quite as bad as Saturday's run, but I think part of it had to do with the fact that I was running in front of people - who probably weren't paying any attention to me - and didn't want to be the sucker on the treadmill who has to stop every couple of minutes because she can't handle it. I wanted to stop several times but forced myself to get through. I think I stopped twice.

I had been running really, really well up until the end of last week. I was running my miles continuously without any breaks and was feeling very confident about it. And then I donated blood on Wednesday and have sucked since then. My heart rate prior to Wednesday was between 160-170, after Wednesday it has been 180-190. I HAVE to assume that donating blood is affecting this, there really is no other logical explanation for the difference in heart rate. BUT I have no information to support my theory.

So this morning was alright. I struggled to get involved in my music, which leads to me expending a lot more energy... I have to step to the beat of the music right now, otherwise I'm laboring - physically and mentally. It all has to gel. As I go through the training and build up my mileage and endurance, this will change (slightly), but right now I have to have the exact right music to run well.

Weight has been up slightly. I had gotten as low as 123.4 last Thursday, which would bring me back to my pre-holiday weight. Everyday it has gone up 1/2-1 pound, which indicates to me that it is water retention. I haven't been eating poorly either, so I'm not concerned. I'll hammer the water this week and see where I get.

With blood donation, Lifesource does a cholesterol test. Mine was a non-fasting test because I forgot that they did that. I checked my results on Thursday and was astonished to find that it was down to 197! I have never seen my cholesterol below 204. The first time I ever had it tested - fasting - it was 288. I was 22. It has never been that high again, but it has always hovered around 210-237. I'm excited - this is validation that the eating changes I have made are helping and are benefiting my body in ways that I can't feel. Also gives me encouragement to continue.

"Plant first" will continue to be my thought before choosing what to eat.